(Heaven’s Key, Euclid’s Domain, Bedroom)

With my eyes closed, and fingers interlocked, I lie on my back on my bed. Still thinking about the problem.

Hmmm…

(TODO Image: The underneath of drone armor is made out of tubular veins, much like a human's body. At the same time it has various mechanical pieces in place of organs. All the blood vessels converge to the fusion power core in the middle which somewhat resembles a translucent synthesis pod with a bluish bubbly liquid inside it. A brain core lies directly below it. Numerous almost invisibly small lines run throughout the organism as it were its nervous system.)

Comparing the specs of my Symbiotics Base assault drone to Eloe’s is like comparing night and day. Even 1,000 of mine going against a single one hers couldn’t win in battle. She wisely got rid of the component data and gave me just what I needed to optimize. I have some leeway to reorder the components, but not much. Even if I wanted to use the parts that she gave me to improve my own drone, I don’t know how to synthesize them yet.

I’ll get to that in the future. It does not matter right now.

What matters right now is that I ignite my soul and grasp that light of inspiration.

Refining the knowledge that I’ve absorbed from the books Eloe gave me, I search for the answer of how to improve her design. And with that goal established, the algorithm running my mind transforms me.

It transforms me into who I need to be to find the answer.

(Ruins Exploration, Research Facility Zillen Outpost X-22, F2)

[https://i.imgur.com/CDPJ3ZB.png]

I am transported to F2. Not wasting time, I immediately get out of line of sight before the elevator doors open. They do so, and from one of my pockets I grab an inactive scouting drone. Holding it on top of my palm, I give it the order to start up, and its wings pop and start turning before becoming a blur.

Quite quiet, it floats into the air.

I close my eyes, and confirm that I can in fact control it mentally as well as connect to its senses. I command it to explore the level, while I remain hidden in a safe place back at the starting point. It goes around the corner and enters the hallway. On this level there is only dim light, which suits my own needs well.

Right out of the gate, on one of the walls I see a poster and turn on the drone lights to see it better.

(TODO Image: Title - Adna Willin. “Adna Corporation’s premier advanced technology research planet. Join us or enjoy us. We work, so you can think!” On the cover was a lush green planet with oceans, and the sun shining some ways in the distance behind it.)

The hallway is fairly short, and comes to a T intersection. On a whim, I pick right and the drone hovers that way. It turns one corner before coming to a door. The door slides open, and what lies beyond feels like the lair of some beast. The walls and floor have scratches like they were made by some claw. The furniture has all been cut apart and there are pieces of plastic scattered around everywhere. There is a lot of rubble.

[https://i.imgur.com/Jp7eJ11.png]

“Ghhhh!!!” I hear a low growl from deeper inside the room. It echoes throughout the level and I can hear it back at my starting point. Its long claw emerging from underneath the rubble, the demonic creature rises. It looks lanky and desiccated, naked without any reproductive organs. From behind, I can see it has pointed ears.

“Raaaaghh!!!” It rises its head and roars in anger and then turns around to look at the drone. I saw its face for the first time as well. The creature has a malevolent scowl. It raises its claw hands and moves on the attack. With incredible swiftness it darts over the rubble, and it makes a swing at the drone. Not being able fast enough to evade, the last thing I see is the claw coming towards the camera before the connection is cut off.

I wield my handgun and prepare to battle inside the elevator.

“Raaaaghh!!!”

“Grahhh!!!”

“Raargh!!!” I can hear the creature scurrying about the room, but feel relieved that it does not seem to be venturing out even if it is sporadically rushing from place to place.

I compare its speed to my own, and conclude that it is about 3 times faster than me. The identity of that creature is a Demon Slasher from the Hell game, and the Hell’s Prototype scenario of Simulacrum. A mid ranking demon, fast, agile and strong. They only start to appear past the initial third of those games to serve as opponents for the Inspired who have moved beyond the low tier.

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If I were to grade myself, I’d put my combat ability at high rank 2. If it is a direct close quarters battle, it would be slightly below that. My reflexes are godlike, and my fitness is peak biology, but that is all that I have going for me. If I for example went into town and started painting it red, it would not take long for the special forces to surround me and put me down.

This demon on the other hand, is clearly superhuman in terms of physical prowess, putting it at low rank 3. I have better mental reactions than it, but that does not matter when my opponent can move and attack much faster and harder than me. Right now, I simply do not have the body capable of taking advantage of my mental superiority, and had I gone into the room myself with gun in hand instead of sending the drone, I’d have gotten cut into pieces and become the creature’s dinner.

Even if I poked a few holes on it with the gun, according to the stories, higher tier opponents don’t have such weak bodies that they can be killed by their defenses being pierced by tiny lead balls. A human is so frail that you could kill him with a well placed needle or a gram of poison, but proper body designs do not have such weaknesses.

So I have a choice. Since the creature does not seem intent on hunting beyond its territory, I can set some traps and lure it towards it. For example, I can synthesize a line of remote grenades, and use the drones to lure it into the trap.

Or I can use smoke and try sneaking past it, into the area at the opposite end.

But before that or anything, let me check out the other fork in the intersection. I take out another drone from my pocket and send it along the way. It goes around the bend, then another and reaches a door. It opens on mental command and inside it is a chair and desk with an orb in a holder. No way is this the end of the level.

I have the drone interface with the core and the administrator interface comes online.

> Adna Base Assistant: How may I help you, director?

> Open all doors.

> Enter power saving mode.

> Database

The core seems to have some control over the level functionality. I check out the database, but it is just some useless personnel data on people who are likely to be long dead. The only thing of use are the first two options. I select them, and two things happen.

First is that I hear the door at the other end of the creature’s room opening. The second is that all the lights in the level get turned off, flooding it in darkness.

“Raaaaghh!!!” Startled by the sudden changes the creature screams in a guttural howl.

On my end, I actually relax and give the order to synthesize an item. In complete darkness, I take off my fingerless gloves and set them aside. Then I sit on the floor and do the same for my boots. Then I wait a little and wait for the item I’ve ordered to finish its synthesis. I got them from the outpost specializing in utility items.

The item is a bundle, a pair of gloves along with toe socks. I put them on starting with the socks, and on mental command the smart material they are made of tightens to a firm grip around my body. I give them a strong pull and confirm they are firmly attached to my foot, and in no danger of being taken off.

With my new equipment worn, I step out in the hallway and crouch down, before sprinting up with my hands raised. My fingers and then my toes stick to the ceiling, and then like a spider, I turn around and make my way towards the creature's room along the ceiling, in complete silence.

“Raaaaghh!!!”

“Grahhh!!!”

I hear it darting about inside the room, making a ruckus.

Due to all the rubble, it would be really challenging to sneak past along the floor without making a sound. Even more so in this absolute darkness.

So I crawl along the ceiling like a 4 legged creature, my toes and fingers sticking to the ceiling. Had I tried this with my old body, I’d collapse from exhaustion midway, but despite being so heavy, this one does not have much trouble making way.

“Grrrr!!!” I enter the lair area from the top. The creature moves as if it was hasted, standing still at one moment and then darting in a random direction in another.

I continue moving, one step after another.

“Ieeee!!!” Right underneath, it does a high pitched wail, and I can only hope this isn’t some kind of sonar. I don’t pause or try to guard because if it detects me, it will certainly kill me either way. With that accepted, I do not feel fear.

My goal is to reach the other room, and the program running my mind does not do the irrational thing of having me shake in terror, doubt my life choices or raise my heart rate undully. It doesn’t do anything of the stupid things my old personality would no doubt have me do that would get me killed here.

Imagine starting to sweat in this situation, and having a drop of it hit the creature below only to have it skewer me in retaliation.

As a human, just what could I do in that situation? I already know what I need to do consciously. Just what would be my recourse if my subconscious decides that the best course of action is for me to shit myself above this terrifying monster?

…One step and then another, I continue towards my goal without my will wavering in the slightest.

A life of a human is a life of indignity. He can only be pushed about. A human cannot accept anything. Everything is forced upon him. His victories are empty and life short. And his tragedies are great and numerous. Floating in the sea like a speck of dust, until he is dissolved into nothingness. What makes a person’s life tragic is no doubt his great will and imagination.

…I enter the room, and give the mental command to the door behind me to close.

“Raaaaghh!!!” The demon screams and I hear some bashing of the door behind me, but it is made of very sturdy synthesized carbon, so it won’t break to its fleshy blows. I also hear some scraping, no doubt from its claws. I wait a little to make sure that it doesn’t know how to open it, and after 20 seconds I decide to just drop down from the ceiling, ignoring the vicious beast still struggling in the other room.

In front of me is a desk with the brain core in its holder. I tap it with the finger and as the interface to the core opens, the light of teleportation takes me.